[Feet don't fail me now. Take me to the finish line. Oh my heart it breaks, every step that I take]
~**~
His foot and pencil were tapping repeatedly at a synchronized pace as his brain was racking for the answer.
(CSCѲ - COTѲ = SINѲ/1 + COSѲ)
Liam hated trigonometry with a passion. Something about even bringing up the subject made his blood quiver and body tremble. All the formulas that needed memorization and hard thinking just made him want to explode. Giving up, Liam moves on to the next problem.
"Alright class, times up! Hand in your exams if you haven't already!" commands their math teacher, Mr. Stevens.
"Fuck," whispers Liam to himself. He didn't have time to finish because he spent too much time on that one problem.
He sighs before standing up and landing his paper on top of the pile of previous classmates. Taking his seat, Liam eyes Louis who fakes taking a bullet to the head in a joking matter. Liam chuckles at his best mate and tries to quickly to maintain concentration. Learning was something he valued as he thought education came first no matter what.
"Okay class, you may leave as soon as the bell rings, and have a wonderful weekend!"
The rest of class scoffs, knowing that Mr. Stevens could give two shits about everyone having a good weekend. The bell rings; many dart out the door. Liam waits behind for Louis to catch up, and the two start their way out the door entering the hall.
"How did you do?" asks Liam while looking down at the different patterns on the glossy textile floor.
"Great actually!" cheers Louis.
Liam adjusts the strap of his backpack, giving Louis a stunned look. "How?! I hate trig so fucking much! That test definitely shot my grade down."
"Oh come on Li. Do you really think I'd try on a maths exam? After looking at the first problem, I just gave up and wrote down 'fuck this'. I'm sure my mum should expect a call from Stevens."
Liam pauses and looks at Louis. The two instantly burst into laughter. "Good one mate. I'll try that next time." Liam pats the back of Louis, his chuckles dying down.
They continue their stroll down the hall until they spot Niall and Harry next to their lockers; their usual meeting spot. Harry shoves his hands inside his pockets and eyes Louis hungrily. "Took you guys long enough."
"Yeah!" chimes in Niall.
"Oh shut up. I had to sit in class remaining quiet the entire time. You know how hard that is?" Louis slaps Harry's shoulder and turns back to his locker, twisting the lock until it opens. Liam mimics Louis' actions, opening his locker as well.
Niall shoots Louis a dumbfounded look. "Why would that be hard? Weren't you focusing on the maths test you guys were taking?"
Louis pities Niall's remark. "No, are you kidding? Fuck trig, it can go drown in hell."
Liam slams his lockers shut, zipping up his backpack. "I second that!"
"See, LiLi gets it."
Niall and Harry roll their eyes. Liam bites his lip, his teeth sinking into the deep collagen wrapped skin. "So I was thinking we could all go over to my place and play some video games, yeah?"
"Okay, but I get to be Yoshi!" shouts Louis while jumping up and down.
Louis and Liam always enjoyed playing a fine game of Mario Kart when they were kids. Hell, they still do. They'll admit it; no shame in that.
Liam crosses his arms. "Fine." He turns his head to face his other friends. "You guys in?"
"Yeah!" agrees Niall.
"Well, I don't have anything better to do than hang out with you loser," laughs out Harry.
With that, the four lads exited the school doors, heading for Liam's house to spend a few hours in each other's good company.
~**~
The four blokes enter Liam's living room laughing at some cheesy joke Niall just said. Liam's laugh fades and he gets serious when he notices a note on the counter.
Went out for few. Order pizza, love. -Mum
Liam takes a deep breath. He hated that his mother Karen would always do this. Ever since their parent's divorce, she does nothing but go out every weekend with friends. If anything, she acted more like a teenager than Liam.
"What's wrong mate?" asks Louis while sending Liam a sympathetic look.
Liam stutters, "n-nothing." Then quickly tries to change the topic. "You guys wanna order pizza, yeah?"
"A thousand times yeah!" exclaims Niall.
Liam chuckles lightly at his blonde friend and dials the pizza delivery number; meanwhile, Harry, Louis, and Niall set up the GameCube system. They all preferred old gaming consoles over the newly updated ones. Something about the newer technology never upheld their interest. A vivid colored screen pops up. The starting menu of Mario Kart is up and ready to play.
"Okay, thank you," finishes Liam while ending his call.
"Li, hurry up!" whines Louis.
"Start without me. I have to check the mail." Liam walks out into the breezy dusk, leaving his friends behind to not just check the mail, but to get a fresh breath of air.
~**~
Thin and frail fingers revel through shoe laces, tying them precisely. Once he achieves the perfect knot on his Nike Air running shoes, Zayn hops to his feet. "Well, I'm off for a run mum. Be back later."
Zayn needed this fucking run. He needed to sweat out all the excess fat trapped under the layer of his skin. He just needed the satisfaction knowing he could control something for once.
Before he can exit out the door, his mother Trisha stops him in his tracks. She was setting the dinner table while Safaa was sitting in the corner playing with her dolls. "Dear, you should really eat some dinner first."
Why couldn't his mother just stop insisting to get her damn child fatter? She needed to stop acting like she cared. The woman would literally stand back while Zayn's father would literally scar the boy, making him think he was nothing but a slob. Now she wants to seem like a 'mother' after all these years? Fuck that.
Before Zayn has time to reject her offer, Yaser walks into the kitchen who was hearing the whole conversation. "Oh Trish, let the boy be."
Zayn smiles weakly, happy that for once his father isn't making a snide remark.
Yaser continued, "You really shouldn't be shoving food down his throat. It wouldn't kill him to skip a meal. Have you seen the boy?"
Zayn's smile faults and turns into a gloomy daze. Damn, he hated situations like this. Why doesn't he just stay in his fucking room, locked away.
Yaser walks up to Zayn, examining his child's physique. He grabs Zayn's arm and flails it around. "You really need to start lifting son. Your arms are more jiggly than jell-o." His father laughs regally and walks up the stairs to go watch the telly in his room.
Fuck this run, Zayn just wanted to cry in his room, but he couldn't do that. He needs to go on this run or he'll be forced to eat. That was definitely out of the picture. Zayn continues his way out the door, not one look of positivity on his face. All Trisha can do is go back to finish setting the dinner table, wishing she could go back and make things different.
~**~
His feet were throbbing with pain and a burning sensation as he continued his jog down the neighborhood. Zayn's face was dampening in sweat while he forced his brain into over-drive. He was so close to three miles that he couldn't give up now. He just wanted to drop the weight so he could feel accepted and appreciated. Until he was the weight he desired, Zayn would continue to follow his father's cruel remarks. He needed to exercise and watch what his body intakes.
Zayn's feet finally come to a stop, his feet excruciatingly sore. He could feel blisters developing. Zayn continues panting while trying to cool off. He pauses the music on his phone, ending his 'jogging playlist'. Quite eager, he decides to check the time on his phone while at it. Expecting numbers, Zayn's eyes widen as a whispering whimper slips off his tongue. Instead of time, the word "EAT" is written in big letters. Trying to believe its unreal, Zayn rubs his eyes vigorously.
"You okay there?" chuckles out a husky voice.
Zayn turns to see Liam's bright face contrasting with the sun set. "Yeah, fine."
Zayn eyes Liam up to down, from his black converse and denim jeans, to his white flannel shirt. The smaller boy was in just a plain black shirt and running shorts. He felt so vulnerable and self-conscious with his legs being exposed compared to Liam's built structure.
Shuffling with the mail in his hands, Liam decides to ask Zayn a question. "Me and the lads are playing video games. You wanna join?"
Zayn bites his lip, trying to find the courage to deny Liam's offer, but he just couldn't. He never had control over anything, and he was just fucking tired.
Just, tired.
Zayn nods, not wanting to embarrass himself with talking. Liam smiles, filling with glee on the inside. The taller boy places his hand around Zayn's waist as he leads him inside.
__________________________________________________________
Hi dears! Sorry I didn't update for over a week, but it's the end of my junior year and the work is piling up. I think updates while be usually every other weekend from now on. Hope that's okay.
Do you guys like the new cover? :)
Hope this chapter was okay? Leave me some good comments? I love your guy's input and feedback. Thank you!
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-Sahar